By Indeewara Thilakarathne
Colombo (CWBN)_ Former Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi led a high-powered Chinese delegation on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka and met with Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The visit is very significant as Jiechi is a Politburo member of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee. Apart from holding senior positions, he was earlier Ambassador to the United States. He served as Foreign Minister from 2007-2013 and his current status is similar to Vice Premier.
Sri Lanka and China agreed to revive stalled negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and to further strengthen bilateral trade relations during a high level meeting held in Colombo. China agreed to bring more investments to the Hambantota investment zone and will be heavily engaged in the fields of agriculture, education, tourism, healthcare, and technology in Sri Lanka in the coming years. The delegation also undertook a visit to the tourist zone.
The Chinese delegation included International Development Cooperation Agency Chairman Wang Xiaotao, Assistant Foreign Minister of China Deng Lee, Chinese Embassy Chargé d’affaires Hu Wei, Chen Song, and Department of Asian Affairs at the Chinese Foreign Ministry Deputy Director Chen Song.
Priority areas
The head of the delegation said that one of the prioritised areas of President Xi Jinping is in promoting and keeping up the friendly bilateral relationship with Sri Lanka. China will also stand by Sri Lanka at international fora, including at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), where Sri Lanka has frequently come under pressure.
Jiechi reaffirmed Chinese government’s intentions to make substantial investments in Sri Lanka and said China could invest in a Technological University to expand the limited tertiary education opportunities in Sri Lanka.
Apart from Chinese investments already large-scale projects, China has identified several areas for investments in Sri Lanka and the areas include agriculture, education, tourism, water supply, healthcare, medical supplies, modern technology, digital economy, blue economy and labour training.
President Rajapaksa recalled that China had helped Sri Lanka win its civil war in 2009. Bilateral relations reached a peak following the end of the conflict. The President appreciated China’s substantial contribution to the development of infrastructure facilities in the country.
“China contributed to a number of large-scale infrastructure development projects. The Hambantota Port, the Port City project and the Southern Expressway are some of them,” President Rajapaksa said, stressing the need to increase the volume of goods that China imports from Sri Lanka.
He said, “Sri Lanka has a strong private sector. They manufacture various products. Open the Chinese market for these items. Encourage Chinese investors to invest in Sri Lanka. Promote Chinese people to visit Sri Lanka. If China can participate in Sri Lanka’s tea auctions, it will be a major boost to economic stability.”
Substantial Chinese investments
“We are eagerly waiting for President Rajapaksa to undertake an official visit to China, once the COVID-19 pandemic is successfully contained globally,” Yang was quoted as saying in the statement.
Edited by Niresh Eliatamby
